


Here There Be Heroes

by Anny_Rudolph



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Gen, THE DE ROLOS LIVE!, VM meets, altered timeline AU no one asked for, i'll add on if that's the case, maybe there'll be romance later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2018-10-12 06:53:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10484931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anny_Rudolph/pseuds/Anny_Rudolph
Summary: In a timeline where something sent Percy back in time to save his family, young Percy recives some good advice. Even if he doesn't believe in fate himself, his family is safe and his hunger for something more isn't going away. Until an elven dignitary come with his two half-elves twins in tow, and Percival sees in them the spark Old Percy told him about before he left.ORThe altered timeline AU no one asked for where VM fucks up, Percy ends up saving his family and younger Percival is left with the task of finding Vox Machina.





	1. In which Percy finds the twins his other self told him about

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Karria](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karria/gifts).



> So, the wonderful Karria chllanged me to do so, and here I am. Also, thanks for being my beta, dear!!!

Percival Frederickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III used to think he was an ordinary teen - well, as ordinary as a teen from royalty can be. He knew he wasn’t going to be the one ruling Whitestone when the time came, and that granted him a freedom his older brother didn’t have. So he dedicated himself on the things he liked instead of the things he needed to know to be a good ruler, and was excused for it. Praised for it even.

He wasn’t worried about his future.

That changed on the day they call “the incident”. It started with the mysterious Briarwoods. They were invited in, came to court, and they attempted to kill the de Rolos. An attempt that wasn’t successful, thanks to a strange man that appeared in the castle some days before.

At first, they didn’t know who he was. Julius thought it would be best to lock him up. But none of the de Rolos could deny the uncanny resemblance, and after his strange reaction at seeing all of them, it was easy to extract the truth from him - as strange as that truth could be. Apparently, he was Percival Frederickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III. He was Percy, just not their Percy. An older and more marred version of the teen presented himself, and after a brief explanation on how he ended up where he was (something about a spinning orb and a god? Percival wasn’t paying much attention to what his other version was saying, and more in analysing the man) it was decided he would stay at the castle until they could find a way to get him home. Wherever and whenever that home may be.

However, something remained about the way Old Percy (as what they had taken to calling him) looked at all of them, something nostalgic with a hint of pain. Johanna, with all the wisdom being their mom got her, was the first to understand at least a bit of why. Vesper was the second, and even if the girl was younger than Old Percy, she still got her older sister grip on him. She was the first de Rolo he told about their deaths. So when both Vesper and Old Percy protested vehemently against the Briarwoods coming, Johanna knew something wasn’t right.

That day, Old Percy told them about what happened in his past, and swore to never let it happen in this timeline. And he proved his words true, when with the help of his strange contraptions he called guns and the rest of the de Rolo family, they defeated the Briarwoods.

Since the incident, Percival knew he wasn’t meant to stay in Whitstone. Ok, his family was safe and sound, and much more aware of strangers now, and all of that thanks to a strange and old version of him. But that… That was exactly why he knew his fate was elsewhere.

He remembers, that day when he was sixteen, right after they defeated the Briarwoods, and while they were waiting for Old Percy’s friends to get him back… He remembers the drawings of the guns, his older self teaching him how to build them, his cautious expression when telling how he came up with the idea… But, most of all, Percival remembers his words.

_“You won’t be contented here.” He said. Percival made a face, and Old Percy laughed. “I know, I was you once. And… While I made a lot of bad decisions, you have the potential to not to do them. To be a better person. And I know that, after you saw all that could be, you won’t be here in Whitestone forever. So I’m giving this blueprints to you... Just in case. I don’t know what’s going to happen from now on - this…” He made a gesture showing everything around them. “This is not my future. And I am not someone who has all the answers for you, Gods forbid. But if know one thing is that… You will find them, or they will find you, one way or another. Vox Machina. It’s our fate, you know?”_

_“You believe in fate?” Percival asked, incredulous._

_“I believe that some things are meant to be, yes. I’ve seen too much to not believe at least in that.” He scratched his beard for a moment. “Listen, Percival. You want an advice? Do not let them get away. If the opportunity presents itself, drop the prick facade and be ready to go. Fate has a way of making the things she wants to happen, happen one way or another. And the second option is not always the best one. So don’t give her a chance to make bad things happen? I went through too much trouble saving our family for it to be lost again.”_

And somehow, young Percival knew Old Percy wasn’t only talking about the de Rolos.

So that’s why, when Percival saw the Vessar twins sneaking past him in the wee hours of the night while he was coming back from his workshop, he was propelled to do something.

“What are you doing?” He asked, making both half-elves jump on their skin. They turned slowly towards him, and Vex’ahlia took a little step foward.

“Oh, Lord Percival!”

“Percy,” He corrected, pushing his glasses up. “And if you’re trying to run away, I would recommend not doing it through the front door. Nor on the second day of your stay, that would only make it easier for eventual search parties to find you.”

The twins paused for a second, surprised, but soon their expressions turned dark.

“And you have a better idea?” Asked Vax’ildan, slightly vexed, his arms crossed.

“I do, in fact. But you might as well continue with your plan,” Percy said. “Good night!” He continued his path to his bedroom, counting down with his mind.

“Wait!” Vex’ahlia called, making Percy stop exactly on zero and smile a little before turning. He saw Vax’ildan pulling his twin aside for a moment.

“Vex’ahlia, what are you doing?” Asked her twin, in hushed whispers.

“He could help us, Vax. Just… Let me…”

“Yes?” Percy called back, not wanting their conversation to grow, and put his serious face on. Vex’ahlia got out of her twin’s grasp, turning back to Percy.

“What do you want from us in return for your ideas?” She answers, her voice sweet as honey. Percival stopped his smirk from showing up in the last second.

“I want to go with you.”

The twins were both taken back by his response.

“What?” Asked Vex at the same time Vax asked “Why?”

“Let’s just say a man once told me to not let opportunities pass by me. So I saw one and I’m taking it.”

“Opportunities? Great!” Vax sneered. “We’re stuck with the big dreams of adventuring noble.”

“But… What do you have to gain from coming with us?” She questioned, puzzled. “You have everything here.”

“Indeed.” Percy nodded. “Why would I leave?”

“He’s fucking with us, Vex’ahlia. Let’s go!” Vax pulled his sister’s arm, but she didn’t move.

“I am not fucking with you,” Percy said, with a straight face. Vex raised an eyebrow, sceptical, which did made Percy smirk a little. “Ok, maybe I am, a little bit. But that doesn’t change the fact that I know how to navigate the castle, the city and most of it’s surroundings like the back of my hand. Or the fact that I can make Whitestone guards look the other way with one word. Or the fact that I can put my family on board with this and actually help us get away without your father knowing. I can give us the perfect opportunity, and all you have to do is let me tag along. So…” He held his hand for one of them to shake. “Do we have a deal?”

The twins looked at each other for some seconds, apparently having an entire conversation with just their eyes. Percy held his hand up, unfazed, while they were deciding, and after a sharp look from Vex, Vax took his hand and shook it.

“Alright, fine. We have a deal. What’s your plan, de Rolo?” The half-elf asked.

“If you can wait, meet me by the door tomorrow after breakfast.” The human replied, his eyes twinkling. “It’s probably best if we not speak of it in a corridor in the middle of the night… And it will give me time to prepare. Right now, it’s best if I simply bid you two good night.”

Percival turned and resumed his way to his bedroom, leaving behind two very confused half elves.


	2. In which they plan at dawn and the De Rolos argue about it

The twins stood by the main door after breakfast, as agreed the night before. Percival could see from miles the annoyed look on Vax’ildan face, and how his sister was starting to get annoyed at him. Percy quickly approached, trying to avoid any further discontentment.   
“Good morning, Mr. Vax’ildan, Ms. Vex’ahlia.” He started, only to be cut off by the girl.

“Vax and Vex, if you will. If we’re to call you Percy, please call us by Vax and Vex.”

Percy nodded. “Very well. Shall we go to my workshop? After all…” He give a sideway look to one of the elven guards that stood nearby. “I did promise you a tour around my creations.”

Vax pushed away from the wall he was leaning, uncrossing his arms.

“Took you long enough, de Rolo.”

“I’m sorry for the wait, Vax. I had some dealings with my family to finish. You know how sisters can be…” He said, directing them to an downward stairs.

“I am deeply wounded by that remark, Lord Percival.” Said Vex’ahlia. Percy just raised a brow, smirking, but the banter had the desired effect. Vax’ildan wasn’t smiling per see, but he at least wasn’t scowling anymore.

Percy opened a door, allowing them to enter. “This is it. Welcome to my workshop.” The twins entered, and the first thing that assaulted their senses was how warm the whole room was. The second thing was the multitude of shards, pieces, tools and scrap metal scattered through the room. The third thing was the giant contraption sitting on the tinkering desk, halfway through it’s construction. “Ah, yes. I do apologise for the mess. You are free to look around, but try not to touch the back powder? It’s a bit unstable.” He said, while working through his stuff to free two chairs.

“What is all this stuff?” Asked Vax, intrigued. Vex was by his side, trying to figure out an unfinished music box.

“I like to do a bit of tinkering, as you might see. I have a lot of unfinished projects, thought. Keep trying to find the inspiration to finish the ones I stopped halfway through, but I never seem to find it.” He grunted as he lifted the chair, bringing it closer to the other two. “There. Now, if you would like to take a seat? I believe we have some plans to discuss.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Asked Vex as soon as the three of them were seated.

“First of all, I think we should leave in your last night here. It will give us more time to prepare, and it will be easier to dodge hastily organized search parties. If you had left yesterday, your chances of escaping the mountain range before being found would be slim at their best. Besides, it will give me time to put my family on the loop, and that…”

“Wow, wow, wow, wait a second there, de Rolo. Put your family on the loop? Are you crazy?” Said Vax.

“Yeah! They’ll probably rat us out to father, and then…” Added Vex.

“Please.” Countered Percival. “Do not belittle me or my family. We might be polite to all, but we do, in fact, have eyes. We’ve seen how you father treats those who are not elves. Besides, we will need their help if you want this plan to work. I’m only the third son of Whitestone, and while that can grant us some freedom, this plan has a better chance of being successful if my family knows what we’re doing. In fact, I’m pretty sure they will approve of our plan, if not to criticize our dramaticity.”

“....What?” Asked Vex, both the twins taken back, again, by what the human said.

“Listen.” Said Percy, taking off his glasses and starting to clean them with his handkerchief. “I might be a prick, but your father is an asshole.”

Vex snickered and Vax gave a half smile. “That’s something we can agree on.” Said the male twin.

“That being said…” Percy continued, putting back his glasses. “With my family on the loop, we can give orders to the Whitestone guards to look at all the wrong places, if a search party is organized. That will increase our chances of not running into any delays, since the only ones who will be actively looking for us will be the elves. Besides, that will mean Whitestone will be aiding us at the best of it’s ability. That means that yes, while we’ll have to lay low for a while and get out of the region, we will have resources. And when things calm down, we could have a headquarters, somewhere to always come back to.”

“So, summing up, we leave in four days, going away like criminals but not really, while the rest of the De Rolos cover for us?” Said Vax.

“Considering I’ll even take us through the back doors, yes, that accurately sums up the plan.” Agreed Percy.

“That’s batshit crazy, you know that, right?” Stated Vax.

“How do we even know your family will agree to all of this, Percival? It is crazy.” Said Vex, wringing her hands.

“Trust me.” He said. The twins exchanged looks, concerned. “Look, I know it’s a hard thing to do. You don’t even know me, not really. But you’ve trusted me this far. You could have left yesterday, but you didn’t. And it’s been paying off, isn’t it? It’s mid morning and you haven’t heard a thing coming from your father. While I’m here, earnestly offering my help, with arguments that you know make sense. So give me the benefit of the doubt and trust me again. I can get us out of here.” Percy ended his sentence with such intent and determination, that it didn’t take too long for the twins to relax again.  
“Ok...Ok.” Vex said, leaning back on the chair. Vax nodded, agreeing with his sister.

“Four days, right?” He asked.

“Four days.” Agreed Percy, with a renewed calmness. “You two are up for it, then?”

“We waited seven years to escape this bastard. We can wait a few days more.” Said Vax. 

Percy smiled, relieved, and clasped his hands together. “Great!”

 

“So, you’re leaving, right?” Asked Vesper, when Percy could reunite all the De Rolos in one room that night. “With the twins?”

“What? How did you…?”

“Percival, dearest, we’ve known since you crossed looks when they arrived.” Said Johanna, with all the tenderness of a mother. “More so after you saw fit to do this family gathering.”

“Besides.” Said Julius. “Old Percy always said you wouldn’t stay here. It was only a matter of time, really.”

“Oh.” Said Percy. “That… Didn’t go the way I expected. That’s… That’s good. It makes things easier, I gather.”

“So what are the circumstances, son?” Asked Frederick. “I know you wouldn’t be this guarded if you didn’t think it was important.”

Percy nodded, looking at his parents. “As you might have noticed, Syldor isn’t exactly a forgiving parent as you both are.”

“He’s a jackass.” Said Oliver. Whitney hit him with the back of her hand, outraged. “What? He really is a jackass!”

“Manners, brother!” His twin sister scolded. “Ludwig and Cassie are here!”

“I am fourteen, Whitney.” Said Cassandra, slightly annoyed. “It’s not like I haven’t heard that kind of language before.” Ludwig only nodded, giving his older brother time to finish explaining his plan.

“We are planning on running away.” Percy said, trying to cut the De Rolo chatter that was about to start.

“Well, you’re not doing a great job at it, are you?” Asked Vesper, with a smirk. “Telling your family and all of that…”  
“That...That’s not...Vesper!” Said Percy, baffled. Julius laughed.

“Stop teasing him and let the kid speak, Vesper.” Said the older brother. Percy resisted the urge of replying petulantly to being called a kid, and nodded gratefully to Julius.

“As I said, Syldor is not so forgiving. So he might react poorly to us traveling together. It might be in our best interest if he isn’t aware I’ll be with the twins when we run away, and if you could... Cover our escape, so to speak.”

Frederick rubbed his beard, thinking. “You do realize, Percival, that you’re asking us to lie to a possible trade partner, yes?”

Percy nodded. “I do, father. But I wouldn’t ask this of you if I didn’t think it was important.”

Frederick nodded in response, but didn’t say anything. The silence extended for some seconds, until Ludwig spoke, for everyone’s surprise.

“If it might help you to make your decision, Father…” Said the usually quiet boy. The older man turned to his other son, surprised. “While I know that it’s not polite to barge in others business, a few days ago I saw Syldor being less than kind with the twins. I don’t think he realized the door was partially open, or if he even saw me. And after that, I could hear Vax’ildan and Vex’ahlia planning their escape.”

“Indeed.” Said Percy. “I suspect that if I haven’t caught them while trying to sneak away from the palace, they would be long gone.”

“Why not let them go, then?” Asked Whitney. 

Percy adjusted his glasses on his face before answering. “A man once told me to not let opportunities pass by me, Whitney. And I’m not about to let this one pass without even trying to do something about it.”

“Let’s face it, Percival.” Said the girl, annoyed. “You’re just doing it because a version of yourself, that we don’t even know if was from another realm entirely I might add, told you so. What can the world out there offer you if not pain and misery, brother? If they want to go away, let them. But you shouldn’t do it based on some strange notion of… Of… Grandness!”

Before Percival could even respond to that, Oliver countered his twin.

“Stop being an ass, Whit. Just because you’re going to miss him doesn’t mean he can’t go. We’re all going to miss him, but we know we all will leave someday.” He stopped, scratching his head. “Well, all but Julius, of course. But the point is, Percy can be an adventurer if he wants. Hells, even you can be an adventurer if you want to, someday. If you have the guts to do so, I mean.”

Whitney crossed her arms, but the call out from her twin broke her angry facade. By now, only tears could be seen in her eyes. “... I hate you, Oliver.” She whispered, her voice broken like the voice of one who is about to cry. Ludwig, that was seated by her side, awkwardly patted her shoulder in an attempt of comforting her.

Percival sighed before kneeling in front of his younger sister. She wasn’t meeting his eyes, and he brought her attention to him with a hand on her knee. 

“It’s not some strange notion of grandness per se, Whitney. It’s the notion that, out there, there’s so much more I could do than if I stayed here. For me, for Whitestone… For all of us. There’s much to see out there, and much to learn, and chances are that I won’t be getting another chance like this one. And while I know this is an unusually optimistic view coming from me, Old Percy brought some perspective to me. And… If he can do it, even without you all, I think I can do an even better job and not make the same mistakes he did. I have the means to protect people, Whit. He gave me that. And I don’t think any of us need more protection than we already have after… After.” Whitney sniffed and nodded. Percy smiled, lending his handkerchief to her, and got up.

“Those two… Do you think they need protection, Percival?” Asked Julius. “Or is it your adventuring streak flourishing?”

“I really do think they need protection.” Said Percy. “And yes, while a part of me is eager to go on an adventure, I believe they are going to need me. And I will undoubtedly need them in the future.”

“Okay.” Said Johanna, after looking at the determination on her son’s eyes. “I know my son, and know that you only address those kinds of matters to us when you are certainly sure you can do it. Therefore, I don’t think we could stop you even if we tried or wanted to.”

Frederick nodded. “I suspected that kind of behaviour coming from Syldor from the moment he tried to arrange a marriage between you and his daughter.”

“W-what?” stuttered Percy.

“Not that we went through with it, Percival. I’m not so desperate as to pawn off my son to get a trading agreement.” Said his father, with a smirk. Percy released a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, making Vesper laugh out loud. “We will help you through this endeavour, Percival. I just don’t know why you have to be so dramatic to the point of running away in the middle of the night.”

“You don’t get it, father. It’s all about aesthetics.” Said Vesper, standing and putting one arm around Percy’s shoulders. The teen made an annoyed sound and tried to get his sister off of him, but all his sibling laughed when she only pulled him closer.

Julius smiled, getting on the edge of his seat, a glint in his eyes. “All right, Percival. Tell us your plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really love Vesper.


	3. In which they run away with a few missteps on the way

It was late at night when Percy heard the knock on his door.

“De Rolo, are you ready?” Asked Vax’ildan from the other side of the door, trying not to make a lot of noise.

“One second.” Said Percy, closing his bag. He put it on his shoulder, checking the holsters of his guns and the long, thin package he was carrying strapped to his back. He gave his room a once over, checking for any forgotten items before nodding to himself and opening the door. Vax and Vex were there, waiting for him, the anxiety barely hidden on the twins faces. “Sorry for the wait. You two got everything you needed?”

“Yeah.” Said Vax. “We’re ready to go.”

“Good.” Said Percy, taking three cloaks out of his pack and giving one for each twin. “Put this on. I don’t think we’ll be needing to hide ourselves yet, but… Just in case. I also have the dust of tracelessness ready to go.” He waited until the twins had the cloaks on them, and Vax nodded. “Let’s go.”

It was a quiet walk through the dark corridors of the castle. For the twins, the dark wasn’t a problem either way, and Percival knew those corridors by heart, so the path wasn’t the problem. He led them towards and through the dungeons, knowing of the hidden passageway there, until Vex pulled his arm.

“Wait.” She said, whispering. Percy stopped, looking at them. The twins were looking at the end of the corridor, frowning.

“What?” The human asked.

“Is there a patrol scheduled for tonight, Percival?” She asked, still whispering. But, before Percy could answer, Vax cursed.

“Fuck, it’s not a Whitestone guard. What the hell are father’s boot lickers doing down here?”

“Think they are on us?” Asked Vex, concerned.

“I don’t know, but they haven’t seen us yet. What now, de Rolo?” Said Vax.

“Oh, for fucks sake.” Cursed Percy, silently, while giving all of his gear to Vex and pushing the twins towards a cell. “Hold this and crouch by the corner there. Vax, I believe you are pretty good at hiding, yes? Use my cloak if you need to.” He gave everything to the twins but the strange package on his back.

“What the…”

“I’m going to distract him.” Said Percy. “Quick, punch me in the guts.”

“Percival!” Berated Vex, but Vax grinned.

“Oh, that I can do.” The male half-elf pulled back, and hit the noble in one swift punch. Percy held his stomach, bowing in pain, and did an ‘ok’ sign with his hand before walking towards the elven guard.

“Who goes there?” Asked the guard, as soon as he saw Percy walking towards him.

“It’s just me.” Said Percy, breathless. The guard took a moment to recognize him, sheathing his sword.

“Lord Percival? What are you doing in the dungeons at this late hour?”

“I just needed some…” Percy didn’t have time to finish his phrase, turning to the side instead and throwing up. The guard was taken back by the sudden shift in the teen. Percy was clutching his stomach with one hand, and holding himself up with the wall with the other. “More materials… I don’t feel so well.”

The guard, who was standing there not knowing exactly what to do, took a step toward him, hesitantly. “Do you want me to accompany you back to your room, your worship?”

“No, that’s not…” Percy dry heaved, making the guard take a step back again. The noble took a deep breath before trying to right himself again. “Maybe you could… Alert my mother? She will know what to do, and I still need to leave the things I got here on… My workshop.”

“Are you sure, Lord Percival?” Asked the guard, still reluctant to leave.

“Yes. It’s better if you don’t stay too close, I might be really sick.” Percy said, trying to clean himself with his pocket handkerchief. “Please, just… Get my mother. Or a healer. Or maybe both, and tell them to go to my room. I’ll… I’ll be heading there in a second.”

The guard took a quick look over Percy’s shoulder, trying to see if there wasn’t anyone beyond him on the dungeon, a move the noble pretended he didn’t see. Then, with a sigh, he nodded. “At once, your worship.”

Percival waited until he was certain the guard was gone to go back to the twins, just to find a snickering Vax and Vex.

“That’s some good distraction, de Rolo.” Said Vax. Percy scoffed and started to get his things back from them.

“That was disgusting, Percival. Effective, but disgusting.” Vex said, giving him his bag.

“But at least it was effective. Come on, let’s go before more of them come this way.” The human said while finishing getting ready.

The rest of the way out of the castle was eerily silent. No guards, no elves, nothing. Not even owls were heard that night, and that made Percival pause as soon as they got out. And he wasn’t the only one who thought that was strange.

“What are you two doing?” Asked Vax, stopping a few steps away from them. “We’re finally out! Let’s go!”

“It’s too quiet.” Said Vex.

“Agreed. We’re bordering the forest, we should have heard some owls at least by now.” Said Percy.

Vax stood there, quiet, trying to hear what the other two spoke about. They stood there for a second, until Vex made a low disapproval sound.

“Something’s wrong, but we can’t know for sure what.”

“Indeed.” Agreed Percy. “The best we can do for now is be careful and walk quietly. I will take us through the main roads, or as near them as possible, just for safety.”

Percy took the lead, showing them the way, but it wasn’t long until trouble found them. The noble sighed, rubbing his face, and crouched behind the bushes with the twins. Ahead of them was a group of what the noble could only classify as poachers. But still, there was something… Strange about them. There was some kind of energy in the air that was creeping in his spine, making him shiver. And by the look of it, he wasn’t the only one who was feeling it.

“Aren’t poachers illegal in Whitestone?” Asked Vax, whispering. Percy raised an eyebrow, questioning his knowledge about this. “Father made us study your policies before we came.”

“Somehow, I don’t think they are simple poachers.” replied Percy.

“Shhh.” Shushed Vex. “They are saying something.”

Percy stilled and sharpened his ears, trying to hear what the half-elves were surely hearing. Two of  the poachers were opening some kind of dire animal, and by the looks of it, Percy could swear it was a bear.

“.... The Briarwoods with little to no trouble. Surely if they find out about us…”

“Oh, be quiet will you? We’re running a stealth operation here, no word of this is going to get to the castle. Besides, vampires are weak and foul creatures. Our master is much more powerful than the Briarwoods ever were, so you don’t have to fear any trouble with the castle. If it ever comes to it. Master doesn’t have anything against the de Rolos, he just wants the forest.”

“Yeah, but… They say the family has a strange weapon that can kill a man more quick than anything you know.”

“That’s just a story to scare people, Jonas. Now shut up and go check on the cub while I finish the mother, will you?”

Percy was trembling, entering in overdrive. His anxiety was starting to get him, his trigger finger twitching, but Vex gasp right next to his ears was enough to pull him back to reality.

“What?” He hissed, being more aggressive than he wanted to be. Vex, on the other hand, did not seem to care, her eyes fixed in something the poachers had.

“They have a live cub!” She whispered. “Brother, Percival, we can let them kill this poor thing! They already killed its mother!”

“Vex’ahlia…” Started Vax, as a warning, but the look on Percival’s face made him stop. “What is it, De Rolo?”

“They… Said some worrying things.” Percy sighed, rubbing his face. “I can’t - look, I can’t make you guys do this, it wouldn’t be fair to involve you in my affairs. I can give you directions of where to go, but I… Vex’ahlia, _what in the Gods names?_ ”

All hell broke loose. Vex had already taken her bow, and with a swift movement, shot an arrow the embedded itself in one of the poachers shoulder. Vax, sighing, quickly withdrew a dagger from his belt and circled the scene, getting the other poacher from behind. Percy, caught by surprise, withdrew his gun, but not before one of the poachers found them. He ran to them with a sword in hand, but was greeted only by Percy’s gun in his face.

“Wha…?”

“I would back up if I were you. Slowly.” Said Percy, trying to copy his older self dark voice.

It didn’t affect the man as much as Percival wanted, but the pause the gun gave the man was enough for Percy to get out of the way of his sword. The noble then adjusted his aim as quickly as he could and fired. The poacher fell, his hands on his knee, and Percy took the slight break to assess the situation. Vex had backed away, and was firing another arrow at the older poacher, while Vax stabbed him the best he could. The poacher, however, was taking the hits like they were tickles, and managed to push Vax away in a swift kick in the chest. That’s all Percy could see before he felt a sword digging in his side, which made him look at his opponent again. He fired his gun once more, and this time the bullet caught in the man’s shoulder, who growled in a wolfish way.

“Control yourself, Jonas!” Said the other poacher, hearing the growl. “You know it’s not worth it!”

“It’s a de Rolo, man! I’m not holding back just to fall like the Briarwoods did! I’m better than a vampire.” Said Jonas, the poacher.

“How do you know about the Briarwoods?” Asked Percy, still in his dark voice. Jonas laughed, and his teeth seemed bigger than before. Before their eyes, the once man now was changing, transforming to something akin to a wolf.

“No vampire… Is a match… For a werewolf…” Said the now werewolf, baring his teeth in a grin.

“Oh, well… Fuck.” He heard Vax saying, which translated pretty much of what Percy was thinking.

Soon, both of the poachers had transformed into werewolves, and the teens were losing the battle. Vex and Vax had been cornered together somehow, both trying to protect the scared cub Percy could now see, who was trapped in a metal cage. As for Percival, he was pinned in a tree by a sword in his right arm, which made Jonas turn away from him and stalk the twins. The more Percy analyzed their current situation, the more he thought they were going to die. Possibly. Probably.

But by the nine hells, Percival Frederickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III wasn’t going down without putting up a fight.

He raised his gun with his left hand, giving up on getting the sword out, and tried his best to aim. A moment passed, with Percy stilling his mind just like his older self taught him to, until the only thing he could see was his target and the barrel of his gun. The forest around him seemed to quiet itself, and his finger twitched. No, not now. No… Y-!

The whole world seemed to shake, making him lose his target once more. And again. And again. And then, in a roar Percy never heard before, the tree right beside the one he was pinned to was ripped from the ground, and used as a club to hit both werewolves at the same time. It threw both of them a few feet away, without even touching the twins, and a grey giant mass hurled at the werewolves, who were scrambling to get back at their feet.

The teens stayed stunned for some seconds, observing the humanoid rhyno kind of monster while it fought with the poachers, before getting hit by a flash of realization. Vax hurried to Percy, taking the sword out of him and passing a potion Percy had packed, while Vex tried to get the cub out of the cage. By the time they were able to unlock the cage, they heard the first crunch. It came with a gargle, an almost scream, and it made the three of them shudder. Percy was the only one who dared to look back, in time to see the six yellow eyes of the creature concentrating on the only werewolf alive in its right hand. The other hand was a mess of flesh, bones and blood that made Percy gag a bit and turn back to the cub.

The cub was huge, practically the size of a normal bear - still, it acted like it didn’t know how to defend himself, and he probably didn’t. Even being a dire bear, all of them knew the cub would be an easy prey alone in the forest. Vex tried to get it out of the cage, but the cub cowed in the cage, frightened. The girl pushed the boys away, trying to get closer to the bear, and both stumbled, landing a few feet away at the same time the second crunch was heard. In an instant, Percy saw the remains of the werewolves being thrown away by the large creature and the same creature hurling towards Vex.

“Vex!” Both boys screamed at the same time, trying to get to her before anything happened, but the girl turned with her bow and arrow ready, aiming for the creature’s face. It stopped short of colliding with the arrow, it’s yellow eyes piercing Vex’s soul. The half-elf, however, didn’t back down.

“You’re not hurting this cub, or _any_ of us anymore.” Vex said, staring right back at the monster that Percy could now recognize as a Grey Render. It huffed in Vex’s face, and Vax was about to attack it until Percy held him back.

“Don’t.” Whispered the noble. “If I’m right, it is testing her right now. We shouldn’t… Interfere.”

Seconds passed, both creature and girl staring at each other, until the grey render relented. It relaxed in its posture, nodding at Vex, and turned, rummaging through the remains of the werewolves. Vex lowered her bow, confused, until it turned back to her with a huge tooth that seemed to be one of it’s own that fell during the fight, and some squashed meat. It presented the tooth to her, and when Vex hesitated, it gently nudged her to pick it up. She gingerly got the tooth from it’s hand.

“Ah… Thank you?”

The grey render nodded with a small huff, and turned its attention to the bear cub behind her. It grunted and the cub responded, and soon both were in a conversation. The render offered the meat to the cub, and pointed to Vex. The cub ate the meat happily, and grunted something, getting out of the cage. The render nodded, and extended its hand to her, turning to her. It took some seconds, but Vex finally put her hand in its, and it put her hand on the bear’s snout. The cub huffed a bit, but soon rubbed himself in her hand, almost like a cat. The grey render huffed happily and turned away as the bear now put his head in Vex’s stomach and the girl scratched its ears, smiling.

And, as quickly as it came, the Grey Render vanished in the woods.

“What the hell just happened?” Asked Vax, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“I… I think I just adopted a bear?” Said Vex, almost laughing as the cub licked her hands.

“It’s more than that,” Said Percy. “I think you got adopted by the Grey Render. Vex, I think… I think you just completed the Grey Hunt.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wait! Is it an update? It is indeed! Sorry for the wait guys - I have no excuses besides being lazy af. But it's here at last, so that must count for something, right? Also, people have called to my attention that the fic that started this mess called Here There be Heroes is called "Try again to get it right" by TazmainianDevil. If you guys have time, go check it out! It is awesome!

**Author's Note:**

> So, I once read a time travel AU that I can't for the life of me remember the name or who wrote it. The thing is, that AU inspired me to do this. After all, how the hell would VM meet if their pasts weren't what they are? So, to the author of that fanfiction, thank you!
> 
> Edit: People have called to my attention that the fic that started this mess called Here There be Heroes is called "Try again to get it right" by TazmainianDevil. If you guys have time, go check it out! It is awesome!


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